Neqotuk Health Center
The Neqotuk Health Center at Tobique First Nation provides a holistic healing environment for all patients who visit the clinic.
By embracing and displaying community cultural aspects, this health center celebrates Aboriginal art, history and traditions. The spiritual aspects of patients’ health issues are addressed along with the physical.
Roxanne Sappier, the center’s Director of Health, graciously took me on a guided tour recently. I was immediately struck by how nice just the waiting room is.
It is a soothing space, with art on the walls, pleasant colours, comfortable seats, a coffee table with a variety of magazines and a TV up in a corner. Not your everyday institutional and sterile waiting room, for sure!
The rest of the clinic is even nicer. Original art murals by Natalie Sappier are painted on walls throughout the clinic. Individual offices and treatment rooms all display a variety of traditional native crafts, carvings, baskets and paintings in a spotlessly clean environment. There are even beautiful potted plants in various spots throughout the clinic. No institutional beige here!
This is a fully accredited Health Canada facility which also addresses many other community needs. The Community Health Room is in constant use offering up cooking classes, healing retreats, language classes, and conferences. It hosts a Traditional Talking Circle each Monday night as well.
There are two examination rooms and a dental office. Dr Joe Tomah is a Dental Therapist who serves First Nation Communities throughout the region.
The clinic has three full time LPNs and a doctor. Overall, about 40 staff members provide health services to this First Nation community.
Personal Support Workers offer home and community care and the clinic provides ‘Meals on Wheels’ for folks in need.
Veronica WolfEagle is the project coordinator for the Maliseet Mental Wellness Team Project. She has a Master’s Degree in Social Work along with a Bachelor’s Degree in Aboriginal Counselling.
Veronica works on integrating services to increase the capacity and understanding of mental health issues to provide better coordination of services and care to the community.
She is also a lodge keeper, pipe carrier and a facilitator of traditional ceremonies such as Talking Circles.
A traditional Native Talking Circle offers a different way to speak about personal issues. Participants are each given the space and time , without interruption, to speak from their hearts about issues that are important to them. The space is sacred, and what is said is respected and kept private.
We seldom , if ever, get a chance to express what’s in our hearts during the course of our daily lives, and if we do speak up, we are usually chattering about the surface stuff our minds like to distract us with.
It is truly healing to speak from your soul to one’s fellow humans and be heard. There is much to be learned from Native Healing Traditions that has long been suppressed, denied and ignored by institutional medicine practices.
And certainly Big Pharma would rather push pills than heal spirits and souls!
Lana Lennon and Della Bernard are Community Health Representatives who counsel clients on preventative health measures, as well as helping patients navigate the system to obtain the best possible care.
The Health Center works with the Wolastuk Healing Lodge ,which provides seven week residential treatment programs to help clients with substance abuse issues.
Many Band Members are survivors of Canada’s Residential Schools. They are still dealing with the trauma they experienced at these institutions. The Health Center offers support and counselling to help heal these victims of Canada’s Holocaust.
This clinic is an inspirational example of how weaving cultural traditions together with health care can provide a truly holistic healing experience for people.
Stephanie Kelley
